The Reflux saga continues: LPR reflux

I've been struggling with the effects of acid reflux for nearly nine months now. Lately it's mostly manifest as Laryngopharyngeal Reflux, LPR Reflux, or Silent Reflux- whatever you want to call it. This is a cagey kind of reflux, the hardest to diagnose and the hardest to get rid of. I've had to pretty much throw my old way of living out the window. I can't drink any alcohol, coffee, or tea. I can't eat tomatoes, peppers onions, garlic, of spicy food. I need to severely limit my intake of fats. So, just about any comestible which has given me comfort over the years is out. I am back on the proton pump inhibitors- yes, if you've read this blog, you know they are the evil meds which gave me reflux to begin with. The goal as far as the medical industry is concerned, now, is to reduce the acid level in my gut to near zero, so there is nothing to splash up into my esophagus.

The only problem is, damaged laryngopharyngeal tissues are very sensitive. Any fluctuation in the acid level in the esophagus results in a flaring up of symptoms. Even the smallest of burps can bring it on, then it's with me all day long until night. The symptoms, in a nutshell, are inflammation of the vocal cords, which means it feels like there is something like a marble in the back of your throat. It's hard to control, and if it can't be controlled, eventually forming of abnormal tissues, which can result in cancer. So this thing is freaking me out pretty badly right now.  My basic tools for fighting it are: small meals more frequently through the day, elimination of snacking, drinking lots of water, chewing gum constantly (it generates saliva, which is alkaline), eating several tabs of deglycyrrhizinated licorice a day, propping myself up at night to avoid nighttime reflux, losing weight, and eating a mostly alkaline diet.

Turns out our training in veganism is proving to be quite helpful. Often the fat content in meat substituts is  pretty low compared to the real thing. Whole grains and vegetables- other than the aforementioned- should make up the bulk of my diet now. So vegan cooking is pretty close to an ideal diet for this affliction. The only modification is I need to eat a small amount of lean meat because the PPIs inhibit your ability to absorb iron, so it's easy to get pretty anemic on these things. I eat leafy greens for the iron, but also bolster that with small amounts of chicken, fish and turkey.

One resource that has helped me is the book Dropping Acid: The Reflux Diet Cookbook & Cure by Jamie Koufman, MD.  The induction diet is kinda hard to stick to because every aspect of it has to be managed. That takes some discipline, something I have always found lacking. I'm getting the hang of it, but man, it is slow going.

So some things I eat work. Some things don't. I find the jury is totally out on what works from person to person. It's subjective, but it's also largely undocumented. The things that don't bother me, I will post- maybe some poor soul suffering from this illness will benefit from my experience.